Joy Oladokun Collaborates With Maren Morris on New Song 'Bigger Man'

Emerging singer, songwriter and musician Joy Oladokun joined forces with Grammy Award-winning artist Maren Morris for her new song, "Bigger Man," out today. Listen/share below. Written by Oladokun, Morris, Jimmy Robbins and Laura Veltz, the track is the latest unveiled from Oladokun's highly-anticipated forthcoming major label debut album, set for release on Amigo Records/Verve Forecast/Republic Records.

Of the collaboration, Oladokun shares, "The day we wrote 'Bigger Man' was actually the first day I had met Maren Morris, Jimmy Robbins, and Laura Veltz. We were bouncing ideas around the room, and I had this song idea that came to mind when I was meditating that morning. The idea was about being the bigger man. In my life, I sometimes experience being the youngest and the most inexperienced, and yet I have to conduct myself as though I am way above my years or my maturity. I think it's an old feeling, especially for women and people of color, of having to be stronger, better, brighter, and harder working at everything just to get a shot. We wrote from that place and the song was born-I'm really proud of what we did. I'm also excited about the friendship and the things that were born out of it. I hope it helps people in the same way that it has helped me."

The release adds to an already notable career for Oladokun, who has shared three additional album tracks so far this year: "sorry isn't good enough," "jordan" and "wish you the best" featuring Jensen McRae. Each released to immense critical acclaim, Vogue named the collaboration with McRae one of "12 new songs to help you beat the winter blues" asserting, "Joy Oladokun is a rare talent who manages to dissect Christianity, queerness, race and mental wellness with a delicate yet determined touch," while Rolling Stone praised "sorry isn't good enough," calling it, "the best example yet of Oladokun's impending pop stardom."

Born in Arizona and now living in Nashville, Oladokun is set on forging her own path, sharing the unique perspective she's gained from living in today's world as a black, queer woman and first-generation child of Nigerian immigrants. Her musical exploration began at age ten when she was inspired to learn guitar after seeing a video of Tracy Chapman-the first time she'd ever seen a black woman play the instrument-and has since gone on to become "a fierce voice demanding equality" (NPR Music).

The new music builds on last year's in defense of my own happiness (the beginnings), of which NPR Music praised, "She has a remarkable ability to distill how forces at work in the world-police brutalizing Black Americans, white religious indifference, plenty else-ravage human trust, and she can make even social and political protest feel like an intimate, warmly human act," while Vogue declared, "already been compared to Adele, Tracy Chapman, and Stevie Nicks, thanks to the rawness that runs through her mesmerizing hybrid of Americana, folk, and pop." Since the release, Oladokun has performed her breakthrough single, "breathe again," on NBC's "TODAY" and "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon"-a performance Rolling Stone hailed as "stunning." The song also received a key placement on NBC's "This Is Us," propelling the track to reach #3 on Shazam's U.S. Top 200 while also charting globally.

Oladokun has continued to receive widespread attention in the past year, including being named a member of the inaugural #YouTubeBlack Voices Class of 2021, an NPR Music/Slingshot's 2021 Artists to Watch, a Billboard LGBTQ Artist of the Month, Spotify's RADAR US: Artists to Watch 2021, Amazon Music's Artists to Watch 2021 and Vogue's #1 New LGBTQ Artists to Listen to Now. Moreover, she was recently highlighted as part of HULU's "Your Attention Please: The Concert" alongside 24kGoldn, Kiana Ledé, Lil Yachty and Swae Lee and has had her music featured on several popular television shows including ABC's "Grey's Anatomy," Showtime's "The L Word" and MTV's "Catfish."

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